Slideshare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. If you continue browsing the site, you agree to the use of cookies on this website. See our User Agreement and Privacy Policy.

Slideshare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. If you continue browsing the site, you agree to the use of cookies on this website. See our Privacy Policy and User Agreement for details.

Robert J. Sternberg (2006) The Nature of Creativity, Creativity Research Journal, 18:1, 87-98, DOI: 10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10

According to the investment theory, creativity requires a confluence of six distinct but interrelated resources: intellectual abilities, knowledge, styles of thinking, personality, motivation, and environment. Although levels of these resources are sources of individual differences, often the decision to use a resource is a more important source of individual differences.

Correspondence and requests for reprints should be sent to Robert J. Sternberg, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, Tufts University, Ballou Hall, Medford, MA 02155. E-mail: Robert.sternberg @tufts.edu

Robert J. Sternberg (2006) The Nature of Creativity, Creativity Research Journal, 18:1, 87-98, DOI: 10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10

Three intellectual skills are particularly important (Sternberg, 1985): (a) the synthetic skill to see problems in new ways and to escape the bounds of conventional thinking, (b) the analytic skill to recognize which of one’s ideas are worth pursuing and which are not, and (c) the practical–contextual skill to know how to persuade others of—to sell other people on—the value of one’s ideas

Robert J. Sternberg (2006) The Nature of Creativity, Creativity Research Journal, 18:1, 87-98, DOI: 10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10

Synthetic skill used in the absence of the other two skills results in new ideas that are not subjected to the scrutiny required to improve them and make them work. Practical–contextual skill in the absence of the other two skills may result in societal acceptance of ideas not because the ideas are good, but rather, because the ideas have been well and powerfully presented

Robert J. Sternberg (2006) The Nature of Creativity, Creativity Research Journal, 18:1, 87-98, DOI: 10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10

Robert J. Sternberg (2006) The Nature of Creativity, Creativity Research Journal, 18:1, 87-98, DOI: 10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10

Synthetic skill used in the absence of the other two skills results in new ideas that are not subjected to the scrutiny required to improve them and make them work. Practical–contextual skill in the absence of the other two skills may result in societal acceptance of ideas not because the ideas are good, but rather, because the ideas have been well and powerfully presented

Robert J. Sternberg (2006) The Nature of Creativity, Creativity Research Journal, 18:1, 87-98, DOI: 10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10

Knowledge. : On the one hand, one needs to know enough about a field to move it forward. One cannot move beyond where a field is if one does not know where it is. On the other hand, knowledge about a field can result in a closed and entrenched perspective, resulting in a person’s not moving beyond the way in which he or she has seen problems in the past. Knowledge thus can help, or it can hinder creativity.

Chang Zhu a * and Li-Fang Zhang b Thinking styles refer to people’s preferred ways of using the abilities that they have. Sternberg’s (1988) identified 13 thinking styles based on the theory of mental self-government. Zhang (2002) reconceptualised the 13 styles into three types.

Type 1 thinking styles tend to be more creativity-generating. They denote higher levels of cognitive complexity, including the legislative (being creative), judicial (evaluative of other people or products), hierarchical (prioritizing one’s tasks), global (focusing on the holistic picture) and liberal (taking a new approach to tasks) styles.

Type 2 thinking styles suggest a norm-favouring tendency. They denote lower levels of cognitive complexity, including the executive (implementing tasks with given orders), local (focusing ondetails), monarchic (working on one task at a time) and conservative (using traditional approaches to tasks) styles.

Type 3 styles, including the anarchic (working on whatever tasks that come along), oligarchic (working on multiple tasks with no priority), internal(working on one’s own) and external (working with others), may manifest the characteristics of the styles from both Type 1 and Type 2 groups, depending on the stylistic demands of a specific task.

Chang Zhu a * and Li-Fang Zhang b Thinking styles refer to people’s preferred ways of using the abilities that they have. Sternberg’s (1988) identified 13 thinking styles based on the theory of mental self-government. Zhang (2002) reconceptualised the 13 styles into three types.

Type 1 thinking styles tend to be more creativity-generating. They denote higher levels of cognitive complexity, including the legislative (being creative), judicial (evaluative of other people or products), hierarchical (prioritizing one’s tasks), global (focusing on the holistic picture) and liberal (taking a new approach to tasks) styles.

Type 2 thinking styles suggest a norm-favouring tendency. They denote lower levels of cognitive complexity, including the executive (implementing tasks with given orders), local (focusing ondetails), monarchic (working on one task at a time) and conservative (using traditional approaches to tasks) styles.

Type 3 styles, including the anarchic (working on whatever tasks that come along), oligarchic (working on multiple tasks with no priority), internal(working on one’s own) and external (working with others), may manifest the characteristics of the styles from both Type 1 and Type 2 groups, depending on the stylistic demands of a specific task.

Chang Zhu a * and Li-Fang Zhang b Thinking styles refer to people’s preferred ways of using the abilities that they have. Sternberg’s (1988) identified 13 thinking styles based on the theory of mental self-government. Zhang (2002) reconceptualised the 13 styles into three types.

Type 1 thinking styles tend to be more creativity-generating. They denote higher levels of cognitive complexity, including the legislative (being creative), judicial (evaluative of other people or products), hierarchical (prioritizing one’s tasks), global (focusing on the holistic picture) and liberal (taking a new approach to tasks) styles.

Type 2 thinking styles suggest a norm-favouring tendency. They denote lower levels of cognitive complexity, including the executive (implementing tasks with given orders), local (focusing ondetails), monarchic (working on one task at a time) and conservative (using traditional approaches to tasks) styles.

Type 3 styles, including the anarchic (working on whatever tasks that come along), oligarchic (working on multiple tasks with no priority), internal(working on one’s own) and external (working with others), may manifest the characteristics of the styles from both Type 1 and Type 2 groups, depending on the stylistic demands of a specific task.

Interdisciplinary research is also published, as is research within specific domains (e.g., art, science) and research on critical issues (e.g., aesthetics, genius, imagery, imagination, incubation, insight, intuition, metaphor, play, problem finding and solving). Integrative literature reviews and theoretical pieces that appreciate empirical work are extremely welcome, but purely speculative articles are not published. Readers are encouraged to send commentaries, comments, and evaluative book reviews.

3.
Introduction (1)
• As more knowledge brings more complex
problems to solve, more & more
creativity in needed in the scientific filed
every day. (StraightAscholar)
• IBM poll of 1,500 CEOs identified
creativity as the No. 1 “leadership
competency” of the future.

4.
Introduction (2)
• Fact-finding & deep research are vital
stages in the creative process.
• Teaching students how to think logically
& how to think creatively & to use these
skills to build their own knowledge.
• This goes against the stereotype of
teaching sciences.

5.
Creativity …
Albert Einstein said:
"Imagination is More Important than
Knowledge.
Knowledge is Limited.
Imagination Encircles the World."

6.
Definitions (1)
Creativity (Noun) Creative (Adjective)
Quality of
Being Creative.
Ability to Create.
Having or Showing
Ability to Make New
Things or Think of
New Ideas.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary

7.
Definitions (2)
Create (Verb) Creation (Noun)
To Produce
Something New by
using Talents &
Imagination.
Act of Making or
Producing Something
that Did Not Exist
Before.
Act of Creating
Something.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary

9.
Rejection of Creative Notions (a)
• Systems in most schools strongly tend to favor
children with strengths in memory &
analytical abilities.
• Creative notions often rejected when the
creative innovator stands up to vested
interests & defies the crowd.

10.
Rejection of Creative Notions (b)
• People do not willfully reject creative notions.
Rather, they do not realize or want to realize,
that the proposed idea represents a valid &
advanced way thinking.
• Society often perceives opposition to the
status quo as annoying, offensive, & reason
enough ignore innovative ideas.

13.
1. Intellectual Abilities
• See problems in
new ways &
escape the
bounds of
conventional
thinking
Synthetic
Skill
• Recognize which
ideas are worth
pursuing &
which are not
Analytic Skill
• Know how to
persuade others
on the value of
one’s ideas
Practical–
Contextual
Skill
**Flowing Together of the 3 Skills

14.
If not together ..
• See problems in new
ways & escape the
bounds of conventional
thinking
Synthetic
Skill
• Result in new ideas that
are not subjected to the
scrutiny required to
improve them & make
them work.
If Used
Alone

15.
If not together ..
• Recognize which
ideas are worth
pursuing & which
are not
Analytic
Skill
• Result in
powerful critical,
but not creative
thinking
If Used
Alone

16.
If not together ..
• Know how to
persuade others
on the value of
one’s ideas
Practical–
contextual Skill
• Result in societal
acceptance of ideas not
because the ideas are
good, but rather,
because the ideas have
been well and
powerfully presented
If Used Alone

17.
2. Knowledge..
• one needs to know
enough about a field
to move it forward.
One cannot move
beyond where a field
is if one does not
know where it is.
On the one
hand,
• knowledge about a
field can result in a
closed & fixed
perspective, resulting
in a person’s not
moving beyond the
way in which he or
she has seen in the
past.
On the
other hand,
Knowledge thus can help, or it can hinder creativity.

21.
3. Styles of Thinking & Creativity (a)
With regard to thinking styles, a legislative
style is particularly important for creativity
• Legislative Style: Creative
• i.e. a preference for thinking & a decision to
think in new ways.
• Note: legislative people tend to be better
students than less legislative people, if the
schools in which they study value creativity.

22.
3. Styles of Thinking & Creativity (b)
It helps to become a major creative thinker, if
one is able to think globally as well as locally
• Globally: Holistic.
• i.e. recognizing which questions are
important & which ones are not.
• Locally: Details.

23.
4. Personality Attributes
• Attributes important for creative functioning
include:
a) Willingness to overcome obstacles
b) Willingness to take sensible risks
c) Willingness to tolerate ambiguity
d) Self-efficacy
• One of the risks faced is that the evaluators
will not appreciate the creativity if it goes
against their own beliefs!

24.
5. Motivation
Intrinsic, task-focused motivation is
essential to creativity.
• People do creative work if they really love
what they are doing & focus on the work
rather than the potential rewards.
Motivation is not something inherent in a
person
• One decides to be motivated .

25.
6. Environment
Supportive & rewarding of creative ideas:
e.g. a forum for proposing those ideas
Obstacles:
Ninor, as when an individual receives negative
feedback
Major, as when one’s well-being or even life are
threatened
• Determinant of creativity growth: changing criteria
for evaluations of creativity on the part of raters.

26.
Confluence of the Six Creativity Resources (1)
Creativity is more than a simple sum of the
level on each component.
1. A thresholds for some components
below which creativity is not possible
regardless of levels on other components
(e.g., knowledge) .

27.
Confluence of the Six Creativity Resources (2)
2. Compensation may occur in which
strength on one component make-up
for weakness on another (e.g.,
motivation/ environment).

28.
Confluence of the Six Creativity Resources (3)
3. Interaction may occur between
components, in which high levels on
both components could exponentially
enhance creativity (as intellectual
abilities & motivation).

35.
Assessments of Thinking Styles
• Questionnaire to help understand thinking
styles—how person tend to approach
situations & make decisions.
• There are no right or wrong answers.
• Think about how you actually behave &
choose the response that most accurately
describes you.
Pearson Education, Inc
http://www.thinkwatson.com/mythinkingstyles-start

37.
Creativity & Science
Creativity is, by its nature, propulsion.
It moves a field from some point to
another.
There are 3 major types of creativity
contributions (creativity)
Types = Paradigms = Models

38.
A. Creativity that Accept Current Paradigms &
Attempt to Extend Them
Replication (Stationary Motion) an attempt to show that the
field is in the right place. The propulsion keeps the field where
it is.
Re-defintion (Circular Motion) an attempt to redefine where
the field is. The current status of the field thus is seen from
different points of view.
Forward incrementation (Expected Rate) an attempt to move
the field forward in the direction it already is going.
Advance forward incrementation (Beyond Expected) an
attempt to move the field forward in the direction it is already
going but by moving beyond where others are ready for it to
go.

39.
B. Creativity that Reject Current Paradigms &
Attempt to Replace Them
Redirection (Motion in a direction That diverges
from the way the field is currently moving).
Reconstruction/ Redirection (Backward to
original location then forward).
Reinitiation (Attempt to move the field to a
different, as-yet-unreached, starting point &
then to move from that point).

40.
C. Creativity that Attempt to Integrate Multiple
Current Paradigms
Integration. An attempt to integrate two
formerly diverse ways of thinking about
phenomena into a single way of thinking about a
phenomenon.
The propulsion thus is a combination of two
different approaches that are linked together.

46.
Lamar Dodd Award 2015
Geert-Jan Boons Professor in
Biochemical Sciences
Developed vaccine that trains immune
system to recognize & attack tumors—
shrunk tumor 80 %.
Developed method to synthesize
asymmetrical N-glycans (structures that
are essential for normal cell function).
Will allow understanding of how
complex carbohydrates function how to
fight against the diseases some of them
cause.